Whether you’re itching to channel your inner Picasso or need to pull
out a winning idea for a big proposal, there are mind hacks to beat
creative block and unleash ideas you didn’t know you had.
TIME: 20 MINUTES + // NEED: SKETCH BOOK/SCRIBBLE PAD, PEN- WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Renaming creative block is easier as
changing your Instagram handle (no
login required). “To get unstuck from
what we call a creative block, we need
to move away from the stance of
calling it a block,” says creativity coach
and author of new book You Are. That
Is. Creative Noula Diamantopoulos.
“Think about it. The word block is
supposed to convey the idea that
you have no inspiration, that you
can’t think of a single thing to write
about, paint about or photograph or
whatever else it is that you do, which
suggests that we have motivation
to create but don’t know what to
create.” A block, she says, would be
when you knew what you wanted
to write or paint or play but had lost
the drive to do it. Just as goals need
to be specific, it’s important to use
language precisely in articulating the
problem or frustration. “We cannot
approach changing something
without understanding the nature
of what it is that we are seeking to
change. Chances are without due
consideration, we start working to
solve a decoy problem or implement
a half-baked ‘solution’ that’s about as
effective as eating Tim Tams to lose
weight (see self-sabotage).” - ME TIME
Don’t be seduced by the notion
that to solve an important, grown-
up problem you need to be driven,
determined and industrious (in fact,
trade your Moleskine for a dollar-shop
scrapbook. Diamantopoulos says
breakthrough ideas demand not just
knowledge, skill and inspiration, but
space. “Spend some time exploring
what it is that you are sensing,” says
Diamantopoulos, who
traded a high-flying tax
law career for life as a
practising artist. “Take an
inventory by answering
the question ‘Where am I now?”,
which can be done as a list or a mind
map and allows you to physically see
what’s happening around you right
now.” Consider the question from
various viewpoints – the physical,
the mental and the emotional.
Importantly, let it take as long as it
takes and consider it an investment.
“Whatever you uncover will become
breadcrumbs that you can follow. This
exercise will act like a launching pad
to change those things that you can
now see may be holding you back.”- SEIZE THE IDEA
Now you know what is holding you
back, make a list (your noggin loves
them) populated by ‘problems’
and jot down possible solutions.
Be mindful of putting too much
emphasis on hatching a ‘good’ idea.
“They are possible solutions, not
the right answer to the problem,”
Diamantopoulos says. The gist is
that you’ll dissolve each item on
your list as you realise something
you hadn’t before (aha!) or commit
to resolving it if it hasn’t dissolved.
Also give yourself permission to
do nothing about a problem or sit
back and shoot the breeze while
channelling Jude Law. These mini
mind vay-cays can be just what the
creativity doctor ordered. “When you
give yourself permission to pause,
you end up coming back with gusto,”
Diamantopouls says.
Order the book at
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MOTIVATION
Needing to drop the calm and get inspired? Focus for that
upcoming exam in your study or hit the dumbbells hard
in your home gym? The colours that will have you lifting
PBs might not be what you expect.
“For a home gym, most people would think energy
and passion colours like red would work best. But red
can quickly make you feel exhausted once your blood
heightens,” says Blaze.
“You are safer with turquoise and teals, as they are a
stimulating colour due to their intensity but at the same
time have a cooling effect to motivate you to keep going.”
Or stick to a neutral base and throw in some yellow
accents for a hint of inspiration.
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HOW TO HAVE AN ‘ah’ MOMENT